


A fiddle at nightfall

by TheMissingMask



Series: Explorations [6]
Category: Black Sails
Genre: Dancing, Dancing Lessons, Drabble Collection, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-05-29
Updated: 2016-05-29
Packaged: 2018-07-11 00:17:38
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,279
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7014568
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheMissingMask/pseuds/TheMissingMask
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Flint teaches Silver the waltz</p>
            </blockquote>





	A fiddle at nightfall

Silver loved watching his men work. He loved the way they moved together in perfect synchrony, like cogs in an intricate machine synergising to guide the ship according to Mr. DeGroot’s carefully plotted directions. It was truly beautiful. A coordinated entity constructed from the deliberate motions of its components.

He had been standing at the quarterdeck for some hours now overseeing the business of the ship. On occasion he would shout an order to someone on the rigging or call instructions down to the deck, but this ship was so well-tuned that such action was rarely necessary, especially on a calm day like today.

The captain had spent the afternoon in his cabin with Mr. DeGroot, the two discussing strategies for approaching Nassau without being seen while Silver and Billy managed the ship’s operation on deck. The ship had already been on the same trajectory, her gentle course for the night, for an hour. The sun was descending sleepily over the horizon, allowing darkness to gradually claim the ocean. But Silver only realised that evening was upon them when a fiddle began to play down below.

At nightfall, Philips, a member of the rigging crew, was want to play his fiddle. It was mostly for himself, he would say, but Silver knew he did it more for his brothers than as a personal indulgence. The men that assembled around him would bask in the music, dancing or singing at times, but mostly just closing their eyes and allowing their minds to drift to thoughts of happier times. Times when this journey would have brought them home. Times when they had a home on land to return to.

After about an hour of standing at the rail and listening to the fiddle sing its welcome to the night, Silver saw DeGroot leave the captain’s cabin. With a small smile he languidly pushed himself off the railing, wincing as a shooting pain in his stump momentarily disturbed the peace of the moment. He made his way down to Flint’s quarters slowly, wondering what elegant plans he and the master mariner might have conjured over the course of the afternoon.

The captain was truly amazing. An excellent sailor second only to DeGroot. A demon - no - the devil himself in battle. A leader to men who resisted all attempts to be lead. And beyond all that, all the power, intelligence, logic and rage, he was a lover. Since realising this new element of the man, the extents to which Flint had amazed Silver only grew.

Given the astonishment the man imbued in Silver, he might not have been surprised when his entrance to the cabin was hastened by two strong arms pulling him into a twirl.

The captain had somehow simultaneously dragged his quartermaster into the cabin, spun him around briskly and closed the door with a deft backwards kick.

Silver laughed and allowed himself to be led to the centre of the room.

“A waltz,” Flint smiled a beautiful, genuine smile that had Silver grinning back. “That’s what he’s playing. Has been playing for the past half hour, give or take.”

“And is that what that was?” Silver motioned with a head to the entrance, “A waltz?”

“Have you never danced the waltz?” Flint’s question was accompanied by no pretence at surprise.  
 “I regret that I have not.”

At that, Flint smiled fondly and took Silver’s right arm in his left, lifting the elbow high. The free hand was placed beneath Silver’s other arm, firmly clasping his shoulder blade.

“Place your left hand on my shoulder.” Silver obeyed.

“The basic step is very simple. Counts of three. Follow.” He began to lead Silver, “One two three. One two three.”

He counted as they stepped in time to the music, slowly and making simple rotations at first, but as the fiddle continued its nightly elaboration and the few dim candles in the cabin became their only light, their dance evolved. Silver remained focused on counting, only occasionally daring to allow his eyes to leave their feet and look upon Flint’s face. Flint, however, needed no such assurance and began to deftly guide them in larger circles and twirls across the cabin floor.

Silver soon found himself looking at their feet no more as Flint’s smile grew with their dance.

They both laughed easily as they spun too close to the desk and the swirl of their long coats sent papers flying from its surface. They were too lost in the dance to care. When Silver stumbled on the boot he was held steady by Flint’s strong arms. When he winced from the pressure on his stump, Flint used firm hands to lift his weight just slightly more from the floor.

Eventually the fiddle silenced and they broke apart, grins adorning quartermaster and captain alike. They immediately shed their heavy coats.

“Where did you learn the waltz?” Silver panted after a time.

“Thomas and Miranda. Their house was always full of music.” The bright green eyes were distant and hazy, lost in memory. “Miranda would play a waltz and Thomas would lead me in the dance.”

“I can’t imagine I am quite the dance partner he was.” Silver spoke with a smirk, but was uncertain if Flint was even with him. Something in the fierce green eyes said he was lost in that blissful house again, listening to the harpsichord sing at Miranda’s nimble command.  
 Flint remained silent for perhaps several minutes. But when he finally replied there was something in his eyes that told Silver he was most definitely there, with him, in this moment. His voice, low and sincere, was confirmation.

“You are every bit the partner Thomas was.”

The music began again, rescuing Silver from the terrifying significance of those words to them both. It was a faster tune now. Silver grinned.

He knew this was coming and immediately had Flint in his arms again, pulling him into a faster caper. He played the role of the follower, but lead Flint until he caught pace.

Silver knew this was to be next. Philips always played a waltz until Roberts came on deck to listen. After a couple of tunes, Roberts would insist on something more cheerful, faster. The only faster style of music Philips knew was the passepied. Silver had noted Roberts heading out of his quarters just before he was pulled into Flint’s cabin, and so he knew what would follow the waltz.

He had been ready for this.

Flint laughed as Silver brought him through the motions of this new dance. He was a quick learner and soon was playing the true role as leader, and starting to elaborate, adding in his own embellishments such as a lift or pirouette of his partner.

“And where did you learn to dance?” Flint breathed as he lifted Silver by his waist, guiding him down gently to the floor.

Silver smirked, “Everywhere.” He elaborated a graceful spin in Flint’s arms.

“The passepied I learnt in New York. The gigue in Paris. The gavotte and minuet in London.” Another lift from Flint, a laugh from Silver. “In Seville I learnt the bolero, zambra and sevillana. In Nassau, a drunken jig or two.”

Flint laughed and they continued the dance uninterrupted, pausing only briefly for breath when the tune changed.

It might have been hours. Certainly the night was pitch black by the time the dancing finally finished. They fell together onto the cot, sweaty, breathless and laughing. Silver looked to his captain and couldn’t help but think that no music played by a fiddle or a harpsichord or a choir of fucking angels, could ever sound as beautiful as Captain James Flint’s laughter.

**Author's Note:**

> So, I have at least two stories with actual plots I am working on and a ton of half-finished doodles, but just had to drabble this quickly after attending a concert at the Royal Albert Hall last night. They played a waltz and my thoughts just drifted from there...


End file.
